State of municipal solid waste management in Pakistan : a case study of Haripur District

Abstract

This study attempts to identify the current Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSWM) practices in Haripur district in order to protect public health and the environment. Due to poor Solid Waste Management (SWM) practices in Pakistan, a large amount of waste goes to unsanitary landfills. This study reveals that at some extent, an effective waste management system was operating at household level in Haripur district diverting a significant amount of waste from landfill by mean of reuse and recycling of unwanted material. However, Municipal Authorities (MAs) are failing to treat the collected waste and it is disposed without reuse, recycling or recovery. This study explored the causes which are preventing an efficient MSWM system at household and MAs level. It was demonstrated that to effectively manage the waste, there is an urgent need of co-opertation between stakeholders dealing with Municipal Solid Waste (MSW). The analysis of quantity and composition of waste collected by MAs in the district suggested that there is a great potential to recover recyclables from the waste. It is estimated that the segregation of recyclables can divert up to 59% of waste in the district from the landfills. Likewise, it is estimated that approximately 3600 metric tons of highly combustible waste is disposed by the MAs in Haripur district, which could be used to produce up to 3,222,960 kWh of energy every year. With the help of energy recovery, the total volume of waste going to landfill can be reduced by 90% while contributing to meet the ever-rising energy demand of the country. BAsed on the quantity and composition of waste available in the district, this study recommends the use of gasification technology for energy recovery. In terms of cost and benefit of waste to energy, the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) was identified to be £.082 per kWh. The current selling price of residential electricity is from £.091 to £.101 per kWh. Though the overall economic profit from the sale of electricity is low, the environmental public health benefits and the potential rise in energy consumption prices in future makes the adoption of waste to energy technology promising.
The findings of this study are drawn from the semi structured interviews conducted from local MAs operating in the district alongside 50 households. Energy Potential Modelling was also carried out to assess Energy Recovery Potential (ERP) from the waste. The aim of surveys and energy recovery estimation was to improve MSWM in the district by facilitating reuse, recycling and recovery of waste.